Veteran hospital administrator Jeffrey P. Winter took over as regional chief administrative officer for Providence Health & Services, California. Nov. 1, replacing Matt Gerlach, who retired earlier this year. With nearly three decades of experience in healthcare leadership, Winter will be responsible for administrative oversight of major state-monitored construction projects, including the completion of the Roy and Patricia Disney Family Cancer Center set to open in February at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank and the 142-bed expansion of Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills. A new outpatient center is also set to open next spring in Porter Ranch. Winter will supervise all Providence governing boards, ministries and foundations as well as Providence High School in Burbank, among other responsibilities. Regional directors overseeing compliance with healthcare regulations and information systems will also report to Winter as will administrators of the Providence Medical Institute physicians group based in the South Bay. “Jeff has a stellar track record for managing multiple facilities, a keen understanding of market-based strategic leadership and great instincts for initiating improvements,” said Arnold R. Schaffer, vice president and chief executive of Providence California. Prior to joining Providence, Winter was working for Catholic Healthcare West and his leadership experience includes working with Hospital Corporation of America, American Healthcare Management, Inc., Republic Health Corporation and Children’s Hospital San Francisco. – Andrea Alegria Accounting Crowe Horwath LLP, a public accounting and consulting firm, appointed the following people to its Los Angeles office: Jaclyn M. Devirian, Staff, Audit and Financial Advisory; Justine T. Grant, Senior Manager, Audit and Financial Advisory; and Utako Harada, Staff, Audit and Financial Advisory. Awards Woodland Hills resident Todd M. Gindy was selected to attend this year’s Northwestern Mutual Forum in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was invited in recognition of his outstanding year of performance serving the needs of clients throughout the region. Gindy is a representative with The Beer Financial Group, based in Encino. The Northwestern Mutual Forum is an education and development symposium that focuses on industry issues and ways to enhance productivity for top producing Northwestern Mutual financial representatives. Of the company’s 7,000 representatives, only 235 were eligible to attend this annual event. CSU Channel Islands (CI) announced that director of Academic Advising and Learning Support Services, Sue Saunders, received an award. She was the founding member of the Advising Center at CI in 2000, and has more than 20 years of experience in the educational field. In March 2009, Saunders attended the Pacific Region 9 conference of her professional group, the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA). During the conference she presented, “The Student Advising Guide from Orientation and Beyond.” The presentation was chosen as the “Best of the Region” by her peers. This award is presented by NACADA to one session at each of the ten regional conferences. Saunders recently accepted the award before a large national audience of academic advisors and administrators. Banking First California Financial Group announced the appoint- ment of Dr. Sung Won Sohn to its board of directors. This appointment fills a vacancy at the holding company and returns the membership to ten directors. Sohn is widely recognized for his past role as executive vice president and chief economic officer for Wells Fargo Banks. He has received many honors for the accuracy of his economic forecasting. Currently, Sohn is Martin V. Smith Professor at California State University, Channel Islands. He also serves as vice chairman of the board at Forever 21, a leading, multi-national apparel retailer, and sits on the board of directors for Claremont Graduate University and the Music Center in Los Angeles. First Private Bank & Trust announced the appointment of John Tellenbach as executive vice president and chief lending officer, commercial banking. He will report directly to V. Charles Jackson, CEO, and will be responsible for managing the commercial banking group and directing new business development activities. Tellenbach’s experience includes serving as the Southwest director of Small Business Banking for Wachovia Bank and holding various senior level management positions at Wells Fargo Bank. He also serves as regional board member of the American Cancer Society. Chambers Jill Haney has been named the 2010 chair of the board for the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce. She will assume the role of chair effective January 1, 2010. Haney will work directly with Chamber CEO Leigh Nixon, officiating board meetings and committee meetings and providing direction for the implementation of various programs and events. She has served on numerous committees for the board, including: nomination, finance, executive and Taste of Simi. Haney has also served as chair for the annual Street Fair. She has more than 31 years experience in the banking industry and is currently vice president and branch manager for Santa Barbara Bank & Trust in Simi Valley. Entertainment The Walt Disney Company announced two of the company’s most senior leaders will assume new roles at the end of the year. Thomas O. Staggs, senior executive vice president, CFO, and 20-year Disney veteran, will become chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. In his new position, he will preside over the company’s vacation businesses, which span three continents and include five-world class destinations, a top rated cruise line and resort locations in North America, Europe and Asia. James A. Rasulo, chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts and a 23-year Disney veteran, will become senior executive vice president and Disney’s CFO. In his new role, Rasulo will oversee the company’s worldwide finance organization, corporate strategy and development, brand management, corporate alliances, investor relations, treasury and risk management activities, controller functions, information systems, corporate responsibility, real estate and taxes. AvatarLabs, an online marketing agency specializing in the creation of online rich media sites and original branded digital content, named Michelle Naden as director of strategic initiatives. In her new position, Naden will be responsible for enhancing AvatarLabs’ marketing and business development activities, based around the suite of marketing services the agency offers to its diverse clientele. AECG, a community of companies that provide a wide range of services and products to the entertainment industry, appointed Charley Brooks to the position of vice president of marketing. She will coordinate, synergize, streamline and enhance all of the marketing efforts for AECG companies. AECG companies offer a broad variety of services including music composition, scoring, audio post, catalogue administration and television production. Among these companies are: Opus 1 Music Library, o1music, The Music Collective, Opus 19 Music, Media City Sound, The Artist Series, Creative Production Group, AECG Entertainment and AECG Branding. Investment David Paik will be managing Scottrade’s new location at 12265 Ventura Blvd. in Studio City in the California Pavilion Shopping Center. Scottrade is the online investing firm with the largest branch network in the country, including more than 65 offices in California. The firm offers a full line of investment products and market research tools to help self-directed investors make their own investing decisions. Technology IRIS International, Inc. appointed Dr. Lawrence J. Blecka to the position of vice president of research and development. He will be responsible for overseeing all research and development of the Iris Diagnostics division, in support of the advancement of the company’s existing and emerging product pipeline. Blecka is a senior executive with 30 years experience in medical device, diagnostics and biotechnology companies ranging from Fortune 500 to start-ups. Prior to joining IRIS, Blecka was group engineering manager for the BioPlex Division of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. He was corporate vice president of research and development for Metrika, Inc., a manufacturer and marketer of multi-use disposable diabetes monitoring products. And he was corporate vice president of product development at Biocircuits Corporation, where he directed a staff of 30 scientists and engineers. Etorus, LLC, a global provider of technologies that reduce fuel consumption and emissions for combustion engines, announced it has appointed Jon R. Carlson as deputy chairman and chief executive officer. Carlson was previously president and CEO in the industrial division of Textron and senior vice president and general manager of Case Corporation’s North American agricultural equipment business. His career started at Deere and Company in general management. Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation announced its board of directors appointed two new directors, James Hugar and Grant Lyon. Hugar has more than 35 years of experience in public accounting, including participation at hundreds of audit committees of boards of directors and trustees for both publicly and privately held companies. Recently retired from Deloitte & Touche LLP, he was the partner-in-charge of the Southern California Investment Companies Industry and Broker/Dealer Practice. Lyon has experience in corporate finance and strategic initiatives that include capital acquisition, business and securities valuation, acquisitions and mergers, and bankruptcy reorganizations. He is president of Odyssey Capital Group, LLC, and has served as interim CFO of Hypercom Corporation, managing director at Ernst & Young Corporate Finance, LLC, managing member of Golf Equity, LLC, and vice president of capital markets at Evans Withycombe Residential, Inc. Hugar began his career at Arthur Andersen LLP.